Launch day USA for Wish You Were Here

June 1, 2011

So, the sun has come out here in the UK right on cue for the launch of Wish You Were Here, which is released in the USA this month.

I’m doing a blog tour all this month and the first stop is Debbie’s Book Bag today.

It’s already got some great four and five-star reviews, such as these from LASR reviews, Fresh Fiction, Genre Go Round and DizzyC’s bookspot. Thank you, guys!

Here’s the blurb:

Jack Thornfield, new CEO, is shocked to see his long lost love, Beth Allen’s resume come across his desk. After 8 years apart they have a second chance at happiness in this romantic story about love and secrets.

You can get the paperback and Nook edition etc right now and the Kindle version on June 14th.

UPDATE: for a very short time, you can pre-order the ebook on Kindle and Nook for just $1.99. That’s an absolute bargain, so grab it while you can.

My inspiration for the story

Wish You Were Here came about from two main ideas; firstly, I wanted to write a romance where the two main characters already knew each other well at the start of the story. Jack and Beth are very young and very much in love. All seems to be set for a fairy-tale ending until disaster strikes. When they meet years later, there is so much baggage on both sides, it seems impossible that they can ever get together.

I also wanted to set a novel in Corsica which is one of the most romantic places I’ve ever visited. The colours of sea and sand, the scents of the herbs, the heat, the mountains, the ancient stone villages and towns… as soon as I set foot on the island I just knew I had to set a book there. In fact I wrote quite a chunk of it on the beach.

Another inspiration was the town of Bonifacio where Napoleon was born. This ancient town that literally teeters on the edge of a cliff – just like Jack and Beth’s feelings for each other… .

I’ll be back all this week with more about the book and Corsica which has a turbulent, passionate history that’s perfect backdrop for a romantic novel and has truly inspired me.

Excerpt

Here’s an excerpt from near the start of the book. Beth has arrived at a travelcompany in London, nervous and desperate to land her dream job so she can help her family. But she doesn’t know who will be interviewing her.


The doors opened onto a corridor. Trotting behind Martha, she tried to read the brass plates on each door they passed. At the end, Martha pointed to a pale beech panel that looked broad enough to admit ten executive directors. She noticed the brass plaque was missing; only screw holes showed where it had been.
‘Well, we’ve finally arrived at the inner sanctum,’ said Martha.
‘Some sanctum. Mrs. Arnold certainly knows how to choose her office.’
‘Ah, but this isn’t Mrs. Arnold’s sanctum. Mrs. Arnold is at a conference. This,’ said Martha rapping smartly on the door, ‘is our managing director’s sanctum. He’ll be conducting your interview.’
Before she had time to reply, a voice thundered through the beech panel.
‘Come!’
Beth didn’t care too much for the way the word was barked out. It sounded far too dictatorial for her liking. There wasn’t even a please, for goodness’ sake. Maybe applying for a job at Big Outdoors wasn’t such as good idea, with an old ogre like that at the top. Yet Martha was gazing at her kindly, rather like the school secretary had when she’d been hauled up in front of the headmistress for carving graffiti on her desk.
‘In you go, then,’ whispered Martha, as she dithered, ‘and please, don’t look so worried. His bark really is worse than his bite.’
Outside the sanctum, Beth heard the call. Unclenching her fist, trying to ease the tension in her fingers, she pushed the door tentatively. The panel swung inwards, making her blink against the light. A sudden blast of air-conditioning dried out her throat. Her nose twitched as the scent of rich, expensive coffee filled her nostrils.
As her eyes adjusted, she noticed a man standing against the huge floor-to-ceiling windows opposite her. It was hard not to notice him—he had to be well over six feet. His broad shoulders were almost straining against the white cotton shirt. His strong back tapered to a lean waist and a rather firm backside. But just as she was telling herself that it was deeply wrong to be ogling bits of her potential new boss, he turned round.
She let out a tiny gasp as the sun blasted in through the window behind him.
Once upon a time, lying alone in bed, sometimes in tears, sometimes twisted with fury, she had planned what she would say if she ever came across Jack Thornfield again. That was years ago and now all of her well-planned responses rushed from her mind as fast as a beck over a crag face.
‘Hello, Beth. Please come in.’
She flinched. Jack wasn’t shouting now. He said her name confidently and gave her a professional smile as if they’d never met or ever shared anything extraordinary at all.

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